Hi camera buffs,

Has anyone taken a tripod with them? How did it work?

I'm considering taking my tripod on my next tour so that I have the ability to include myself in group shots as well as take better night shots. (I have the remote control as well as the self-timer.)

I've been on lots of tours and I know that tripods are not permitted in most museums and some other tour sites and I'm prepare to deal with that aspect. I had my monopod with me on a tour to the southwest U.S. and did make some use of it but really longed to have had my tripod with me.

What's your experience having a tripod with you? Thanks,

Hey ZeldaSue!

I did take my mini tripod with me to Italy and it came in VERY handy for shots where there was very little lighting and at night time as well. Extremely handy in churches!

Without the tripod on our evening in Venice I would not have been able to capture the mood in St. Marc's Square nor the Basilica of St. Francis lit up at night.

I wanted to tote along a larger one but it would have been a real pain to carry. The mini one fit nicely into a carry bag and if I had to I could have clipped it onto my waist on a belt loop.

With group shots I just passed off my camera to someone willing to take our photo. It was hit and miss but for the most part - the shots of the four of us came out really well!

Setting up a tripod when you have so little time and you're constantly on the move can be difficult at best!

Mini is the way to go ... !!

Hope this helps!

Hi Tammie,
I know what you mean about setting up the tripod. The mini - is that the type that sits on a table?
- Zelda

Yes Zelda! It's a little one made by Optex - the legs are 4 inches long at their shortest and they open to 6.5 inches at their longest.
Handy dandy!
I bought it at Henry's Cameras in case you have one near you!

I might have this totally wrong, but I do think that some places (and I sort of thought that St Peter's was one) have a "No tripod" rule. I forget why, but I am quite sure that Chris M mentioned and explained about it once.

Shannon

I've got to think that the no tripod rule is for 3 basic reasons (at least):
1 - security
2 - traffic (People setting up tripods in museums and galleries impede the flow of traffic and could possibly create some breakage situations.)
3 - economic (If people are taking their own "postcard" photos they won't purchase the merchandise at the gift shop.)

I would only be using the tripod outside.

Tammie, I know what you mean about the photos being hit and miss when you pass your camera off to someone else. At least you can check to see if the photo is at least half-decent. And, yes. I'm within 5 km of Henry's! They love me.

Shannon! Hi girl! I never saw a sign in St. Peter's and no one told me to stop using it ... mmmm ..... if I broke the rules I didn't know they were there in the first place ... which means ... no confession for me!

Zelda - the whole digital technology makes that a wonderful thing ... people must get so tired of me giving them the 30 second lesson on how to shoot the perfect in focus people picture and then for me to say .. can you try again .. a little closer .. and less of this or that?!?!

Oh and by the way .. I am SURE you very lovable!

Hi


My son took his mini tripod and achieved some amazing shots from the Giotti Hotel in Assisi.It

He laid it on the Ledge of the room 's very small terrance frame, the view overlooking the tranquil place that it is. in the night .their is a sign that you are not allowed to go out on ths terrance but the tripod helped him angle his camera for the amazing shot's, he was able to achieved with the mini tripod, it does not take up much packing room either.

quote:

Originally posted by ZeldaSue:
Hi camera buffs,

Has anyone taken a tripod with them? How did it work?

I'm considering taking my tripod on my next tour so that I have the ability to include myself in group shots as well as take better night shots. (I have the remote control as well as the self-timer.)

I've been on lots of tours and I know that tripods are not permitted in most museums and some other tour sites and I'm prepare to deal with that aspect. I had my monopod with me on a tour to the southwest U.S. and did make some use of it but really longed to have had my tripod with me.

What's your experience having a tripod with you? Thanks,

I have never taken a tripod on a Trafalgar tour. If I did, what size would I take? What would be reasonable?

From a storage area in the house, I hauled out all of my tripods that I could find, which I have not used in years.

If I were to take one, which one would I take?

The big old tripod is out of the question as it is too large.

The next one is ok, but it does not fit in the Trafalgar bag... just a bit too long. I think I would want it to fit in the Trafalgar bag, as I don't want to carry it on the bus separately.

The final Tripod seems ok, as it will fit in the bag and is light in weight. I opened it up and looked at it. Hmm! A burst of wind would knock this thing over and ruin my camera.

What should you do?

Take a tripod if you like, as it is a rough decision. Toss a coin, maybe.

Cat's

I intend to buy a gorillapod but the shops here all sold out just before Christmas so I will be grabbing one as soon as they come back into stock.

You can use it as a standard mini tipod or it will wrap around railings or almost anything.

I will replace my existing mini tripod with it.

Gorillapod

I'm really enjoying the various comments and suggestions and glad I'm asking the question well in advance of the May trip. This just might give me enough time to make a decision and any necessary purchase(s).

Dragons, I was reading your message and thinking, "And what's a Gorillapod?" when I saw the thoughtfully provided link! Gracias!

I do have a mini tripod from the predigital olden days and it's not light at all. I also have a vise grip thingy that my father gave me. The only problem with those two is I have to twist the camera onto them each time. At least with my regular tripod it's on a quick release platform.

Being a toy lover, I find that this Gorillapod is intriguing me and I may just look into it and become even more lovable.

By the way, the monopod was a great helper as I was walking along the windy path to the Cliffs of Moher in Ireland.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: ZeldaSue,

I have one of those "gorillapods" - didn't know that's what they were called and mine's 3 legs are not as curvy! It's 4" long, bendable and screws into the bottom of the digial camera - it also was a hand-me-down from my 35mm. I only use it for self timer mode shots when I want to be in the shot. I find on tour, photography is done a lot on the fly-unless you set aside special times to go shooting. Therefore, I no longer bring it on tour, despite how small it is - time is always at a premium on tour! You also need a stable spot to set it down. On independent travel, when the pace is more leisurely, perhaps a tripod session is a nice adventure to incorporate into a day.

quote:

By the way, the monopod was a great helper as I was walking along the windy path to the Cliffs of Moher in Ireland.

I always take a monopod. Very lightweight, small (it collapses to a small cylinder about 8" long and easily fits into the Trafalgar bag) and very useful for nighttime or interior shots. Most places which ban tripods have no problem with monopods.

I once took a mini tripod with me on tour, but didn't end up using it (didn't always have it with me when I did want it). Alas, I lost it somewhere along the way back home. I've got no idea where! It was in my backpack in an outside pocket before my flight home & after I got home, I couldn't find it anywhere.

A guy on one of my tours last year brought along a tripod - a full-length one. He seemed to use it quite often.

Those gorilla pods look interesting! I shall have to keep an eye out for them. Whereabouts have you seen them Dragons?

They were in the letter box junk mail a few weeks before Christmas Clare. You should be able to get one at the photo sections of Kmart, Big W or one of the camera shops. I was a bit slow getting around to trying to buy one and by the time I tried a couple of days before Christmas all the stores had sold out.

They should be back in stock shortly (if not already) and I will pick one up soon.

I stopped taking either my mini tripod or monopod with me on tours a few years back and usualy have been able to find a substitute solution when necessary (even used my wife's head for a night shot without flash in Moscow's Red Square). I will probably take the Gorillapod with me this year though (assuming I get one )